El crecimiento del sector servicios en Irlanda se desacelera, se evidencian los efectos de la guerra en Oriente Medio

Investing.com – According to the AIB Ireland services sector PMI survey released on Tuesday, Ireland’s services sector growth in March was among the weakest in five years, as the outbreak of the Middle East war pushed up costs and weakened business confidence.

The AIB Ireland services business activity index fell from 51.8 in February to 50.7 in March, declining for the fourth consecutive month and hitting the slowest growth rate in seven months. The reading shows only a mild expansion, far below the long-run average of 55.0.

Three of the four sub-sectors achieved modest growth. The business services index was 51.5, financial services 51.0, and technology, media and telecommunications reached 51.4. The transport, tourism and leisure sector contracted to 47.6, marking the ninth decline in 12 months.

Growth in new business slowed for the fourth consecutive month, reaching the weakest pace since August, while new export business was broadly flat.

Input costs surged at the fastest rate in three years. Respondents attributed higher spending to fuel, energy, wages, pension contributions, raw materials and professional services, with the Middle East war and supply-chain disruptions cited as contributing factors. The transport, tourism and leisure sector saw the fastest rise in costs across the sub-sectors.

Service providers cut headcount in March, the only third employment decline in five years. Employment in the three sub-sectors fell slightly, while the financial services sector posted a small increase.

Business confidence fell to its lowest level since October 2020. Companies said uncertainty about how the war would affect the global economy and domestic consumer confidence weighed on their outlooks.

AIB Ireland’s composite PMI output index, which combines manufacturing and services data, fell from 52.5 in February to 52.1 in March, indicating that the pace of private-sector expansion hit the slowest in six months.

AIB Chief Economist David McNamara said the services PMI at 50.7 shows very modest growth, and that activity levels are weakening amid slower new business growth and rising costs linked to the Middle East war.

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